ACM Announces Industry Award And Studio Recording Winners For 55th ACM Awards
The Academy of Country Music’s reigning New Male Artist Riley Green and New Female Artist Tenille Townes announced the Industry Award and Studio Recording Award winners for the 55th ACM Awards Dec. 8 via Facebook.
The 2020 Industry Awards, the 2020 and 2021 Studio Recording Awards, along with Special Award recipients (to be announced next spring), will be honored during the 14th ACM Honors, an evening dedicated to recognizing the special honorees and off-camera category winners from both the 55th and 56th ACM Awards. There will not be 2021 Industry Award recipients as eligibility requirements were unable to be met due to the live entertainment shutdown caused by the pandemic.
The 14th ACM Honors will take place on Wednesday, August 25, 2021 at the historic Ryman Auditorium, with more details to come in early spring.
Click here to see the winners.
Justin Moore And Big Machine Music Extend Publishing Alliance
Justin Moore. Photo: Seth Hellman
Multi-Platinum selling artist Justin Moore and prominent independent music publisher Big Machine Music announced the extension of their long-term, exclusive music publishing agreement. As one of the founding artist-songwriters initially signed to Big Machine Music (then Super 98 Music), Moore has co-written five of his nine No. 1 songs as an artist. His most recent chart-topper “Why We Drink” marked Big Machine Music’s 35th No. 1 on country radio.
“Loyalty and friendship are things I learned to really value from my parents and hope my own kids appreciate,” says Moore. “These moments are another reminder of the people who have believed in me and continue to invest. Thank you, Mike and everyone at Big Machine Music as we create more stories through song.”
“Justin is part of the foundation of Big Machine Music. ‘Til My Last Day’ was the first No. 1 song in this catalog and I’m so excited and honored that he will continue to be a big part of our future,” says BMM General Manager Mike Molinar.
Moore was also recently recognized with four BMI Million-air Awards for a collection of songs he both wrote and recorded, including: “Til My Last Day,” “The Ones That Didn’t Make It Back Home,” “Lettin’ The Night Roll” and “Small Town USA.” Each accumulated over one million U.S. broadcast performances.
“Justin Moore has been a mainstay on country radio for the last 12 years. Millionaire certificates are such a huge milestone in the career of a songwriter and show the true reach and impact of a song in such a tangible way. We are thrilled to celebrate this accomplishment with Justin, who has been a BMI songwriter since 2013,” says BMI Executive Director, Creative—Nashville, Leslie Roberts.
“I can’t say it enough, but the team taking care of us and celebrating our music the way the fans do, I’m just really grateful,” says Moore.
Wide Open Music Publishing Relaunches, Taps Victoria Goodvin As VP/General Manager
Victoria Goodvin. Photo: Josie Kay at Ivy Tribe Nashville
Victoria Goodvin has been tapped as VP/General Manager of the newly relaunched Wide Open Music Publishing.
Originally launched by industry executives Ash Bowers and Steve Williams in 2013, the company found success with Brett Young’s double Platinum single “In Case You Didn’t Know,” which spent two weeks atop the Billboard and Mediabase charts, as well as Parmalee’s Top 5 hit “Close Your Eyes” and Kristian Bush’s “Trailer Hitch.” The Wide Open catalog claims Keith Urban’s “Boy Gets A Truck” and Montgomery Gentry’s “Folks Like Us,” as well as various album cuts by Dustin Lynch, Canaan Smith, William Michael Morgan, Love and Theft, and many others. The publishing company was acquired by Endurance Music Group earlier this year.
Goodvin is a native of Princeton, North Carolina, and moved to Nashville in 2009 to attend Belmont University. She landed her first publishing job as creative director at Song Factory (now Riser House). After working for various publishing companies, Goodvin was hired to assist with publishing and management responsibilities at Wide Open Music in 2019.
The relaunched Wide Open Music Publishing’s songwriter roster includes: Chris Bandi, George Birge, Maddie Larkin, John Marlin, and Tim Owens, the latter having been signed during the company’s initial tenure.
Musician/Songwriter/Producer Dave Cohen Signs With Spirit Music Nashville
Dave Cohen. Photo: Delaney Royer
Spirit Music Nashville has signed a worldwide publishing deal with musician/producer/songwriter Dave Cohen. Co-producer of eight No. 1 songs and session musician on over 50 No. 1 songs, Cohen is teaming with Spirit to bolster his songwriting career.
Cohen moved from Calgary, Canada to Nashville in 2007, and began his time in Nashville touring with artists including Joe Nichols, Big & Rich, and Wynonna Judd before making the shift to session work as a studio musician in 2012. An award-winning keyboard player, Cohen was named ACM Keyboardist of the Year in 2017 and 2019 and MusicRow‘s Top 10 Album All-Star Musicians of the year for Keyboard in 2018 and 2020.
His production credits include Morgan Wallen, Chris Lane, Dallas Smith, Jake Owen, HARDY, and more. Cohen has also collaborated with top notch producers like Joey Moi, Dann Huff, Ross Copperman, Corey Crowder, and Shane McAnally.
Cohen joins a roster at Spirit Music Nashville that includes hit songwriter Jonathan Singleton, Grammy-winning songwriter David Garcia, a MusicRow Song of the Year winner and Grammy-nominated writer Jeremy Bussey, and ACM Guitar Player of the Year Derek Wells, as well as Bobby Hamrick, Brinley Addington, Frank Ray, and Neil Thrasher.
Warner Music Nashville Signs Country Trio Temecula Road
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Warner Music Nashville has partnered with Disney Music Group’s Buena Vista Records to welcome the newest addition to its label family: California-bred, Tennessee-based country band Temecula Road.
The up-and-coming trio—comprised of Dawson Anderson, Emma Salute, and Maddie Salute—has formed a unique sound with its three-part harmony and signature mandolin. The Temecula Road team also includes Champ Management, JRM Publishing/Disney Music Publishing, and WME.
“We are so excited to join the Warner Music Nashville family and continue working with Buena Vista Records,” the band said. “We truly feel like this is the dream team for us. Although we’ve yet to meet in person, Warner’s passion for our band was so strong we could feel it via Zoom. We can’t wait to get to work and meet face-to-face in 2021!”
Dawson, Emma and Maddie boast stage credits worldwide, from Stagecoach Festival in their home state of California to C2C: Country to Country Festival in London. Temecula Road is planning new music in 2021.
Liz Rose Music And Warner Chappell Music Sign Global Co-Publishing Deal With Josh Kiser
Josh Kiser. Photo: Courtesy Warner Chappell
Liz Rose Music and Warner Chappell Music Nashville have signed a global co-publishing deal with Josh Kiser. This year, Kiser released “The F Word,” “God’s Been Good To Me,” and his latest single, “I’m Never Drinking Again.” The rising singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist has opened for acts Tracy Byrd and Craig Campbell, among others.
In 2019, Kiser signed with artist development company Starts With Music, run by three-time Grammy award-winning producer/songwriter Nathan Chapman and multi-Platinum producer-songwriter Kevin Kadish. Taking cues from outlaw and ’90s country influences, the Tennessee-native is busy in the studio recording new music.
Darrell Rae Inks With Mixtape Music Group
Singer-songwriter Darrell Rae has signed with Mixtape Music Group. Rae moved to Nashville from Jacksonville, Florida to pursue his dreams in Music City. His latest single, “Proofs in the Bourbon,” has over 1.2 million spins on Spotify.
Rae joins Mixtape Music Group as the third staff writer, alongside Landon Magee and Bobby McLamb. A new independent music publisher, Mixtape Music Group has celebrated many singles this year and their catalogue includes recent songs written in collaboration with Liz Rose Music, Lady Luck, Riser House, Endurance, Sony, and more.